Without a Trace
song: Lions Roar OA: The Hush Sound ivypool shenanigans The lions roar and young men soar The flames all scorch the circus floor : Ivypool's wounds stung like fire. Dark warriors were sitting in a semicircle around her and Hawkfrost, her opponent. Hawkfrost's pelt was still sleek and lacked any fresh wounds. He stared at Ivypool with a mocking gleam in his blue eyes. : Some cats, mostly the living trainees, cheered for the cats. About half, including her own Clanmates, cheered for Ivypool. The others, which included Breezepelt and Redwillow, backed Hawkfrost, shouting at him to kill her. Hawkfrost was obviously ignoring them, but he glanced sideways at Tigerstar every few heartbeats, as if expecting the older cat to praise him. : Narrowing her eyes, Ivypool scraped her claws against the nettles, scoring marks through the leaves. Then she lunged at Hawkfrost, her teeth bared and a snarl in her throat. : The dark tabby dodged, raking his claws along Ivypool's flank as she leaped past him. As Ivypool tried to regain her balance, Hawkfrost barreled into her and sank his claws into her flank and shoulder. Beads of blood welled around his claws, and his eyes flashed. : Mapleshade cleared her throat and announced, "This match is over." She nodded at Hawkfrost, and the tom stepped away from Ivypool, allowing her to stand and shake dust and nettles from her fur. "Ivypool!" The deceased she-cat cuffed Ivypool's ear, a growl in her throat. "That was terrible! How do you expect to fight well if you can't even scratch your mentor?" Her dark eyes smoldered with scorn. : Ivypool hung her head and trudged back to her spot. As she settled herself between Blossomfall and Thornclaw, Mapleshade called out the next pair to fight - Breezepelt and Darkstripe. Blossomfall shuffled closer to Ivypool until their pelts brushed, and Ivypool was grateful that her friend was there to support her. : "I'm sorry, Ivypool." Blossomfall whispered, her eyes sympathetic. : The grey-and-white tabby shook her head. "It isn't your fault." Which was true. Ivypool had been so distracted recently, being a spy. The plans of the battle had clung to her mind like burrs, and now it was all she could think about. Even with plans of a battle on her mind, she couldn't concentrate on fighting. Puppets on strings all dance and sing and flap their wings Trumpets play sick lullabies : After the results of battle training were announced, the trainees and the Dark Forest cats split apart into separate groups. The trainees either bragged about their victories or mocked the ones who lost. Ivypool and Blossomfall strayed away from their Clanmates, but no one seemed to notice. : "This is insane!" Blossomfall gasped, wincing as she put weight on her wounded paw. Sweeping her gaze over the larger group of Clan cats, she growled, "And they're going along with it." She paused, then whispered, "Will they really fight alongside the Dark Forest?" : Ivypool didn't want to believe that, but the Dark Forest cats had the Clan cats wrapped around their paws. She knew that the dark cats had lied to the living cats, promising power and ways to protect their Clans. The dead cats had said nothing about having to train with unsheathed claws. The ThunderClan she-cat wondered how many warriors were actually putting up an act like her. : "I'm not sure. But the Dark Forest cats did lie about protecting the living Clans to get us to train with them." Ivypool pointed out, her voice low. "Their motive was to get us to join them and fight the living Clans, but at least half of us have to turn against them." : Blossomfall looked unconvinced, but after a heartbeat nodded slightly. "Yeah... Yeah, you're right." The tortoiseshell's shape suddenly disappeared. Looking back at the other Clan cats, Ivypool saw that more than half had disappeared. Breezepelt, Thornclaw, Icewing, and herself were all who remained. : Breezepelt strode over to Ivypool, the wounds crisscrossing his black pelt from his fight still bleeding. He sneered, "You're really weak, you know that? Darkstripe nearly died a second time, and you didn't even touch Hawkfrost!" : Ivypool stiffened. The tom's arrogance was infuriating, but she couldn't show her anger. She turned and stalked away, her tail lashing. She could hear Breezepelt's jeers as she padded further away, and she closed her eyes for a heartbeat. When she opened them, she was back in the ThunderClan warriors' den, staring up at the concerned face of Dovewing. Delicate dame, her fragile face Was scared away without a trace : "Any new information, Ivypool?" : That was the first thing Jayfeather said to her as Ivypool entered his den. He was already preparing his herbs to treat her. His tone was impatient, and his head swung around to face Ivypool, his blind eyes boring into the warrior. : Dovewing, who closely flanked Ivypool, growled, "Don't say that, Jayfeather! She's exhausted and wounded, give her some rest." : Ivypool shook her head slightly. "It's okay, Dovewing." she murmured, drawing away from her sister. Looking back at Jayfeather, she meowed, "Nothing new. I'm sorry." She stepped a few paces back, silently wishing that she could leave. : Jayfeather snorted. "Of course." He dragged a large leaf over to Ivypool and settled himself beside her. He began to spread poultices over her wounds. "It seems like information is impossible to get now. It's been a half-moon, and you haven't gotten any new things to tell us about." The medicine cat paused, then hissed in Ivypool's ear, "Is there anything you're not telling me?" : Ivypool was taken aback by his question. Does he really doubt me...!? ''"Of course not!" she snapped back, flustered. She scrambled away from him, her claws sliding out. : At the same moment, Dovewing leaped to her paws, lashing her tail. "Don't doubt Ivypool! I know she's not one of the Three, but that doesn't mean you can't trust her!" : Jayfeather's fur bristled. He was obviously startled at the she-cats' sudden anger. He continued his work in uneasy silence. None of the cats spoke a word until Jayfeather had finished applying the poultices. "Go report to Lionblaze." he mewed flatly, dragging his dock leaf back to the herb store. : Wordlessly Ivypool stood, turned, and padded swiftly out of the den. She ignored Dovewing's questioning voice and almost broke into a run. "''I know she's not one of the Three..." ''Dovewing's words stung Ivypool. Aside from Hawkfrost's lies, that had been the reason she'd started training with the Dark Forest - because Dovewing got all the attention for being the third cat in the prophecy. : Instead of going to find Lionblaze like she'd been ordered, Ivypool left camp. Her legs still ached from training, but she continued to wander aimlessly through the forest. A light, icy rain had begun to fall when she reached the lake, and she knew that someone - most likely Dovewing - would get worried and search for her. : Still, Ivypool stayed at the lake. Out in the cold, where did she go? Into unknown, a place I'll never know : "Ivypool." : The cold hiss nearly made Ivypool leap out of her fur. She scrambled to her paws, her blue eyes wide. The voice sounded familiar, but when Ivypool scanned her surroundings, she found that she was still at the lake. ''Why... he's not supposed to be here! Terror was building up in her chest as she looked around for Hawkfrost. : There was no sign of the dead cat. Even the musty scent of the moss and nettles always clinging to him was absent. This made Ivypool even more nervous. And the desperate search began All across this sea and land I just knew I'd find you here I just knew I'd find you Elephants rear and young men steer The audience just claps and cheers I asked around half-empty towns About a girl nowhere to be found And the desperate search began All across this sea and land I just knew I'd find you here I just knew I'd find you We didn't know, we could not go The circus songs just carried on Out of the crowd, three men rush out And scream and shout, "Everybody stop!"